Decade Study - 1950's

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Transcript of Decade Study - 1950's

Topic 8: Australia's Social and Cultural History in the Post-War Period Inquiry question•What have been the major social and cultural features of a post-war decade?

5.1 explains social, political and cultural developments and events and evaluates theirimpact on Australian life 5.2 assesses the impact of international events and relationships on Australia's history 5.4 sequences major historical events to show an understanding of continuity, change andcausation 5.5 identifies, comprehends and evaluates historical sources 5.6uses sources appropriately in an historical inquiry 5.7 explains different contexts, perspectives and interpretations of the past. Students learn about:Post-war Australia•The impact of changing technology on everyday life in post-war Australia: housing home appliances, entertainment, transport, communications Decade Study•The social and cultural features of ONE post- war decade including: fashion, music, entertainment, sport, British or American influences on popularculture Influence of the United States. During the 1950s, Australia's allegiences changed significantly. Australia was initially very loyal to the mother country, Britain. After the end of the Second World War, however, Australia started to look to the United States for popular and political influence. This process is often refereed to as the 'Americanisation' of the Australian cultural landscape.

As a result of this and the advent of Australian television, Australian people were inundated with American popular culture.

1. James Dean: 'Rebel Without a Cause'James Deal became a teenage icon, providing young people in Australia with a depiction of teenage life as an anxious struggle for independence and acceptance.

2. Elvis Presley and Rock Music.Elvis and his grinding dance moves became a revolutionary influence on Australian popular culture.

- Gave teenagers a voice. This was their music. Adults were too 'square' to 'get it'. - It appealed to teenagers because it was so wild and free. It only make it 'cooler' that mum and dad hated it! There was strong rebellious streak in Rock and Roll. Many parents initially saw Rock and Roll as 'evil' as it seemed too 'loose and free'. - New dances emerged that were much wilder than the way people danced in the 1930s and 1940s. People began to really move to the music. Many parents believed it encouraged their teenagers to behave inappropriately, and they did not like the dance styles that came with the music.

3. American television: 'I Love Lucy'As television became more popular and affordable, the number of shows expanded. Australian content was mostly limited to chat and variety shows, news and current affairs. There were some British shows, but broadcasters quickly looked to America for programs (e.g. 'I Love Lucy') American westerns were quickly popular. Housing It was period of a rapid housing boom and increasing spread of suburbia. Owning your own home on the quarter-acre block became the ideal and was usually met with plenty of low cost land and low interest rates available for loans. The advent of the (reasonably) cheap car made living in the suburbs possible. Land was totally cleared of all trees and shrubs which led to suburbs of houses in bare streets. New building products such as concrete, fibro, masonite and gyprock meant faster building. Prefabricated homes for self-builders were also developed. Very few of the new suburbs had the necessary infrastructure such as sewerage, schools and transport, though electricity and water supplies and sometimes gas were installed. Houses became simplified, functional and boring. It was cheaper. Lino (an early vinyl) and laminex dominated the kitchen and bathroom. It was utilitarian, hardwearing, durable and available. Lino was water-proof, stain-proof and colourful and it did not matter how bad the wood was underneath or whether it was laid on concrete. It worked. However, stiletto heels could make a mess of it as they punched holes in the floor. Laminex meant a durable surface on a cheaply made box-frame underneath using composite woods which could not take being wet. It was used in kitchens, bathrooms and laundries. The house on its block was fenced in, usually with a paling fence separating neighbours and a low brick wall or brick and wire wall facing the road. The toilet moved inside and was a separate room from the bathroom. There was a separate garage at the end of a long drive from the front to the back of the block usually with a ‘workshop’ in the back half. Communications. Radio and newspapers were the most significant way of accessing news and entertainment.

Almost all families had one or more transistor radios. The newspapers and radio were the most common way for news and events to be communicated.

There were no home computers, no stereos, no video games and no mobile phones.

Going to the movies was very popular. Most movies were American (though Australia had a small movie industry). The most famous actors were American, and Hollywood was already one of the coolest places on earth (or it looked to be in the movies). American movies impacted on Australian fashion and musical tastes. (Think James Dean, Natalie Wood and Elvis). It was period of a rapid housing boom and increasing spread of suburbia.

Owning your own home on the quarter-acre block became the ideal and was usually met with plenty of low cost land and low interest rates available for loans.

The advent of the (reasonably) cheap car made living in the suburbs possible.

Land was totally cleared of all trees and shrubs which led to suburbs of houses in bare streets.

New building products such as concrete, fibro, masonite and gyprock meant faster building. Prefabricated homes for self-builders were also developed.

Very few of the new suburbs had the necessary infrastructure such as sewerage, schools and transport, though electricity and water supplies and sometimes gas were installed.

Lino (an early vinyl) and laminex dominated the kitchen and bathroom. It was utilitarian, hardwearing, durable and available. Lino was water-proof, stain-proof and colourful and it did not matter how bad the wood was underneath or whether it was laid on concrete. It worked. However, stiletto heels could make a mess of it as they punched holes in the floor. Laminex meant a durable surface on a cheaply made box-frame underneath using composite woods which could not take being wet. It was used in kitchens, bathrooms and laundries. The house on its block was fenced in, usually with a paling fence separating neighbours and a low brick wall or brick and wire wall facing the road. The toilet moved inside and was a separate room from the bathroom. There was a separate garage at the end of a long drive from the front to the back of the block usually with a ‘workshop’ in the back half. New electrical whitegoods, generally meant to be labour saving, were becoming cheaper and more affordable. Electric and gas ovens replaced wood-burning stoves. Refrigerators replaced the icebox which meant that shopping no longer had to be done daily. Freezers were incorporated into the fridge and led to an expanding supply of frozen goods. Electric and gas hot water systems meant hot water at the turn of a tap and not having to wait for the water to boil on the stove. Home Appliances The Mixmaster by Sunbeam made home cooking easier. Electric kettles, pop-up toasters and electric irons appeared which was just as well because the wood-fired stove top which used to do these jobs had disappeared. Table-top electric sewing machines with all sorts of add-ons became available, sending mothers back to producing clothes for the family. The electric washing machine replaced the copper boiler and wringer and this, in turn, meant more synthetics were used, particularly for bed linen. Because of its distances, Australia has always relied on the railway and the motor car and for many years we had the highest per capita ownership of private vehicles. Railways stagnated from the 1880s with steam remaining the most common form of propulsion but the arrival of diesel technology in the mid to late 1950s changed travel by train to a more pleasant event. Holden produced its first vehicle designed specifically for Australian conditions in 1953, the FJ Holden, which became an icon of the period and demand always exceeded supply. In the post-war years heavy trucks, which had been left here by the US Army and were no longer being used by the Australian army, were sold-off and pushed into service to establish long-haul cartage and carrying companies to compete against the unreliable sea-going coastal shipping companies. Similarly, troop transports formed the foundation for bus companies, which developed to service the growing suburbs and break the isolation of those suburbs where no transport infrastructure had been built. Aeroplanes, which had proven their worth during the war, were now pressed into service as commercial transport, and returning pilots found work in these industries flying DC3s as passenger transports. Qantas began its first international service in 1958. In 1956 the Circular Quay underground railway loop was opened in Sydney. Transport ‘Elegant’, ‘conservative’ and ‘stylish’ are the words synonymous with 1950s clothing for both men and women.

Women usually wore a hat and gloves when they went out. Men usually wore a suit, even if they worked at a manual job, with a white shirt, short back and sides haircut and a hat. Towards the end of the 1950s, as the austerity of the war receded and rationing ended, clothes became brighter, influenced more by the changing fashions of the United States rather than the conservative fashions of Britain. Fashion In the late 1950s ‘bodgies’ and ‘widgies’ appeared, influenced by the leather bikie fashions of the ultimate rebel, James Dean, in Rebel Without a Cause, East of Eden and Giant. These fashions were to be revived in the musical stage show Grease in 1972 and later the film. In 1950 Joan Sutherland won the Mobil Quest, after winning the Sydney Sun Aria in 1949 and headed off to Europe to begin an illustrious career in opera. The early 1950s were characterised by the crooners and bobby-soxers of the Frank Sinatra era, with Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney still favourites of the older generations The era of rock and roll began in the mid-1950s influenced by American movies and music, with ‘Rock Around the Clock’ from the film Blackboard Jungle really taking off in Australia, particularly when sung on TV by Johnny O’Keefe. Music Elvis Presley became a world-wide phenomenon and younger people flocked to his films and looked for films of his performances wherever they could. The older audiences thought his performances ‘obscene’ because his swinging hips were too suggestive and many of his films were censored. In 1958 a Sydney radio station published the first Australian Top 40 chart following a common practice in the United States. In 1955 Barry Humphries’ alter-ego Edna Everage made her first appearance on stage in Melbourne. The radiogram was developed further and became cheaper, and with the advent of the 33 rpm long playing record, it became another important feature of home entertainment. As the availability of television expanded so did the influence of the United States which flooded the market with sitcoms such as I Love Lucy, game shows and music shows. Radio was king. Children listened to radio serials in the afternoon or the very popular ABC radio programs in the 5 to 6 pm evening timeslot and Mum and Dad listened to more adult soap opera sagas in the evening. Entertainment Popular music shows also transferred to television and again brought the American influence to the fore with filmed performances of popular groups and visiting artists appearing on live television. Bandstand on commercial television and Six O’Clock Rock on the ABC became the icons of the late 1950s rock music scene in Australia and were, for their time, very advanced.